Hall of Fame
All of the Crusader varsity basketball coaches have emerged with winning percentages over their coaching stints at Pasadena and Point Loma, but none have been able to match the extraordinary success of Ken Keoppel.
Coach Keoppel assumed the reigns as head basketball and track coach in 1948 when the Crusader athletic program was just a couple of years old. Although the track programs continually improved under his leadership, these accomplishments were overshadowed by his remarkable accomplishments as a mentor of the Crusader cagers.
His teams enjoyed winning records in all seven seasons under his tutelage. He guided the Crusaders to their first two District Championships. Under Coach Keoppel, the Firehouse Five of 1953 won 31-straight games and finished 34-2—both school records. His 162 career wins placed him in the record book for coaches at Pasadena and his winning percentage of .763 is still talked about to this day.
Keoppel’s teams scored points in a wholesale fashion which staggered the imagination. Can you believe that in the 1953-54 season the team scored point totals of 139, 132, 130, 120 and 108?
After leaving the Crusaders, Keoppel completed a second term with the Japanese Christian Junior College in Japan . He retired with his wife Fern in Nampa
Keoppel was awarded the Outstanding Achievement award by a basketball coach, presented by Bob Miller.
